Can Danny?

Paul Pierce got a taste of it against Chicago. Kobe was on the wrong end of it in Philadelpha a few nights ago. There's a changing of the guard in the NBA and the stars of the 90's are about to be eclipsed by the Class of '00.

This year has been a coming out party for many young stars who finally got out from under the shadow of a veteran player. Luol Deng's all-around game is finally getting some notice. Andre Iguodala has emerged now that Allen Iverson is out of Philly. Kevin Martin has made everyone in Sacramento forget about Bonzi Wells. Chris Bosh put his imprint on Toronto in his first full season without Vince and is now making a run at first team All-NBA status. While many people saw last year's Finals, in which the elder Shaq stepped aside so Dwyane Wade could be the team leader, as an isolated incident, it is actually a sign of the times. The Class of '00 is taking over as many of the 90's stars start to reach their 30's.

Unfortunately, not everyone is taking the news very well. Andrei Kirilienko has openly complained about his role while murmurs in Phoenix are that Shawn Marion hasn't been pleased by the lack of offense and credit that he's been receiving. Unfortunately for AK-47 and The Matrix, no matter where they go, they'll likely find themselves in the same position. Every team will likely have one or two players who are better and younger. While they might still consider themselves superstars (and are still paid as such), the reality is that they are more complementary players now.

The time has come for many teams to realize that they can't keep sticking with their old reliable and slowly build around them. Teams like Sacramento (Bibby, Miller, Artest), Minnesota (KG, Davis), and Seattle (Allen, Lewis) need to realize that, if they don't think they can win a title in the next three years, they need to start rebuilding today. While KG is still a franchise player, guys like Bibby and Ray Allen need to realize that they are going to be facing new roles on winning franchises. Allen is still a great player but if he is going to win a title, it will be as the second fiddle. Bibby is likely a third option on a contending team. As strange as this sounds, these guys, and many of their peers, need to learn a lesson from Stephon Marbury. The self-proclaimed best point guard in the league has overcome the selfishness that had plagued his career and is now fitting in to the Knicks system, even going so far as to say that the Knicks are Eddy Curry's team. For the first time in since he left Minnesota, Steph isn't the leading shot taker on his squad. In fact, he's third, behind Jamal Crawford and Curry.

The other poster boy for selfishness, Kobe Bryant, has matured as well but his issue is his supporting cast. The Lakers need to realize that, no matter how talented he may be, Lamar Odom simply isn't reliable enough to be a second star in the NBA anymore. On the other hand, the Lakers are risking a lot by expecting Andrew Bynum to be ready to accept the 2nd star mantle before Kobe and Odom starts to wear down from injuries.

For the Celtics and Paul Pierce, what all of this means is a change in strategy. The days of Paul holding the ball and going one-on-one are over. In fact, the days of Pierce being the man that runs the offense are likely over. This isn't as big of a deal as the offense often ran through Antoine during his time here. If the Celtics are to succeed in the near future, they are going to have to work the ball into Big Al Jefferson more often. Unfortunately, I'm not sure Big Al is capable of running the offense through the post so the C's will likely require a PG to help facillitate the offense and spread the ball between Pierce, Big Al and the other Celtics. (Rondo might be that guy but I'm not sure about that as of yet and for the next couple of years, we need a veteran PG to hold the position while Rondo develops)
As for Gerald Green, I don't think he has the IQ or intangibles to be anything more than a complementary players (albeit potentially a great one ala Rashard Lewis or Shawn Marion). Pierce and Jefferson are the core of the offense but Green will likely get a number of good looks in the flow of the offense. But the key to that is that the offense must flow and it can't be the current version in which Pierce often holds the ball nor can it be the previous Antoine/Pierce dominated offense from the beginning of this decade.

The days of Pierce, Carter, KG, etc. being the dominant force on a winning team are over. If these guys want to win, they are going to have to become part of a team. If they don't seem able to handle that reality (or if their team is unable to build a solid team around them), then they should be sent away for parts that fit.